I did a search and found that a lot of issues arose around the DCM and I'm no different.
My passenger door will not unlock. The lock function works just fine.

What I did find was a lot of threads blaming the DCM and the need to replace this $230 part.

Now I'm not cheap but...
Has anyone tried to replace a relay on the DCM circuit board? And if so, what info do you have on locating a replacement relay?

My SIL thinks we can hop over to Radio Shack and pick up a replacement. I'm thinking I'll hop over to a dealer and get a replacement module.

 

Contact Gene at fred beans... forum vendor... module is a common problem

 

Thanks Evil-Twin.
I intend to go to a forum vendor, either Fichtner or Fred.

Does Fred rebuild these modules? I guess I could find out by making a phone call.

 

No, Gene Culley at Fred Beans is an authorized dealerand only deaals in New parts... although his prices are the best I've found....he is also very easy to talk too. All he needs in your vin#....
Same with Ken Fichtner.... Boths guys are the best.. I deal with Gene because he is in Pa. Service and speed are his forte`...
There is also a vendor on the forum that deals in used C5 parts... he is also a great guy, so I am told. Forget his name. I have some issues with buying used electrical parts....atleast with Genuine GM parts, your going to get a year warranty.

Gene Culley
Parts Manager
Fred Beans Pontiac Buick GMC of Limerick
40 Auto Park Blvd
Limerick, Pa 19468
610.495.1700

E-mail Address
gculley@FredBeans.com

 

Well, If I had bet my son-in-law I would have lost and I'm eating crow.
He repaired my door control module with a relay from radio shack. I don't know how long the repair will last but it saved me a couple hundred bucks.

For anyone interested Radio Shack sells mini-relays that are single pole, double throw (SPDT). The one you want is catalog number 275-005A and sells for less that $5.

Once you have the DCM off the door, it opens and exposes the relays. By process of elimination he was able to single out the bad relay, unsoldered and removed the offending part, then soldered in the new relay. Soldering points match up exactly so there must some sort of standardization. With his skill the process was 10 minutes.

The hardest part is getting the trim panel off and back on.


Edited due to wrong part number

 

Same problem with drivers side lock.
How by process of elimination can you find the bad relay?
Thanks,
Fred

 

WOW!!! That is EXCELLENT!!!!!!!! I wish you would have taken some digital photos!! That would have been worth it weight in GOLD to see the guts in that module!! !!

GREAT JOB!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BC

 

Car is not buttoned up yet so I'll see about getting pictures tonight.
In our case Fred, you activate the door lock with your finger on the relay. My door would lock but not unlock. You can feel the relay "click" and possibly hear it.

Bob

 

mine does the opposite, willl unlock but not lock. pics would be most cool to show us what to look for.

 

Wow this is very interesting. Its weird I had the same issue except both of my doors did it but it was intermittent. One week my driver door would not unlock, two weeks later my passenger door wouldnt unlock. I did replace my driver door control module as I fried it myself on accident once. Since both doors did it I just figured it was my car doing weird things because my battery is on its last legs. Wonder how my problem could be intermitent (only did once per door so far) and on BOTH doors? any clue?

 

Hi there,
I just got back from my S-I-L with a better description and pictures.
Now that I've seen the actual repair, my posts above were prior to the visit, there are some anomalies to mention.

I had the wrong part number in my thread above and I've fixed that. The correct Radio Shack part number is 275-005A. The only real issue with this repair is the new relay is about an eight of an inch higher than the OEM relays and this caused an issue with closing the outer DCM box. We had to cut the box to allow the door to close tightly. Some of you may not want to proceed, but for those that do, here is the skinny and I hope the pictures work.

Here are the components opened:


There are four relays. One each for door lock, door unlock, window up and window down. I changed the door unlock relay.

Here is the board:


Here is the issue with the height of the new relay:


And here is the closed case, slightly modified to accept the taller relay. I suggest running a bead of a silicon/RTV caulking to seal though since this is inside the door and not watertight anyway, good ole duct tape to the rescue!!





Thanks to my son-in-law who does electric component repairs.

I hope this helps others.

 

Blindfingers, that was a good find for a repair. I've had an issue with one of mine for a while now and am going to look at my module to connsider how to proceed.
The only thing I will advise you of is: it may not be a long term fix. I looked up the part on the Radio Shack site and it is rated as a 7 to 9 volt relay. It really depends on how long the module keeps 12V. applied to the relay each time you push the lock/unlock button. It will handle 12 volts for a while, hopefully a long while, but failure is probably somewhere down the road. But hey, for five bucks, it's a great fix.
The contacts are rated for 12A. at 125VAC. so that should be no broblem and I think the contacts are what's being burned up in the original relay's.

 

Thanks Alanh,
I would agree that the 7-9VDC relay coil could be an issue but this was the only footprint to match up to the board. My SIL feels this will last as the coils are fairly robust and the key is the contact points. Besides, the power is applied for only a second. The bad relay coil was working so it was the contacts that are most likely burned.

This relay may not be suitable for the window functions but we'll see how far the lock works.

I started to look up the Aromat OEM relay and see Panasonic is the distributor. I never got as far as seeing if they are available to the public without buying a thousand or so. I hope if someone knows a way to get the OEM relays, they will let us know.

For now all is working.

 

Or you can contact Gene @ http://www.geneskarshop.com/
(Forum Supporter)
Got a used one for $35 to my door. The 00' vert works fine now..........